God is just. He is righteous. Therefore, it would seem that 'mean' is not an appropriate word to describe Him. He's not a bully on the playground, stealing our toys, provoking us to anger. My dictionary says that "mean" means unwilling to give or share, unkind. That's the opposite of God.
If He is anything, God is kind, sharing and giving. Yet, there are many sides to God and although He is long-suffering, there is a limit to how much He will tolerate.
We humans are always saying things like, "If there is a God, why does He allow such atrocities?" My answer to that would be, "He doesn't. We do. We allow the atrocities by not calling on God to do something." Prayer changes things. But, when God does do something, we can't question His actions and turn around and call Him "mean".
So, for my part, my opinion is that God is certainly not mean. But, is He violent?
It sure seems like it. Just sitting in my livingroom, listening to the thunder crashing all around during a storm can be pretty scary. But, to me, it's exciting. I know I'm safe. I can trust God that no harm will come to me. Maybe for some people, who don't have a relationship with Him, God can be pretty scary.
However, God is not trying to scare us into Hell. He's trying to love us into Heaven.
I John 4:8 says, "...God is love." That should mean that whatever He does, He does in love. If God sees fit to get violent (as when Jesus overthrew the money-changers' tables in the temple) it's for a good reason.
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