All of us have heard the above proverb, but did you know that it is a part of Ezekiel's parable taught to Israel during their sharp turn away from God to idols.
"Behold, everyone who quotes proverbs will quote this proverb concerning you, saying, ‘Like mother, like daughter.'" Ezekiel 16:44
God informed Israel their sins are more like those original heathen inhabitants of Canaan than like the God of Abraham! He compares their pride that led them to idolatry to the pride that led Sodom to destruction (Ez 16:56). For this reason He calls Sodom and Israel sisters. In other words God says you are living like heathens were your mother and Sodom is your sister! Note these Lessons to Learn from Ezekiel 16 about Pride
Pride Causes us to Trust in Ourselves and Not in God (vr 15)
Pride Causes us to Trust more in What God has Given us and Not in God (vr 16-25)
Pride Causes us to Misuse the Blessings from God (vr 16-25)
Pride Causes us to Never Be Satisfied (vr 26-29)
Pride Causes us to Pay an Expensive Price for Sin (vr 32-35)
Pride Causes us to eventually be more corrupt than Sodom (vr 47)
Israel's Conduct was more Abominable than Godly! For this reason he quotes the proverb, Like mother, like daughter. Israel had become like their peers instead of like God. They worshipped idols, participated in the sensual aspects of idolatry and even offered their own children as sacrifice to idols (vr 20)! While trusting in self, they abandoned God!
How to guard against PRIDE:
Remember without God we are like an unclaimed and neglected infant. We are lying struggling in our own bed of death (vr 4-14). It is God who saves us, clothes us, claims us, cares for us, and blesses us so richly. To lose sight of this is to fail to live for Him, or to use our blessing to glorify Him. This pride will cause us to think that some way we will survive without Him! Instead we must HUMBLE ourselves! Let another Proverb be said of us, Like Father, Like Son!