When Jesus says that a prophet is not without honor except in his own country and among his own people, the saying is more than a modern observation that familiarity breeds contempt. In the Gospel setting, a person's family, hometown, and established social identity strongly influenced how others assessed his standing.
The people who knew Jesus' local background could therefore find his public authority difficult to reconcile with the place they believed he occupied in the community.
Honor was a major form of social capital in the ancient Mediterranean world. Reputation was publicly recognized and was closely connected with family, ancestry, occupation, and community standing. A person who appeared to claim a role above the status others assigned him could meet resistance.
The Gospel questions about Jesus' family and origins belong to that social setting. The problem is not simply that his neighbors possess more biographical information; familiarity becomes a reason to discount claims that exceed their expectations of someone from their own community.
This background gives greater force to the Gospel emphasis on astonishment and offense. Jesus is not rejected because his hearers fail to understand that he grew up nearby; that very familiarity contributes to their resistance.
The saying exposes the difficulty of recognizing God's work when it comes through someone whose social identity seems too ordinary or too familiar to carry unexpected authority.