When you read in Genesis, the story of Joseph, you see that he was favored by his father.  Add to that the two dreams he tells his family about, how all of them would eventually bow down to him.  Although this would eventually come to pass, it was something that his many brothers resented.  The dreams had to be heaven sent though; they certainly did all bow down to him. 

This is yet another example of how well God had laid out their lives long before His finished plan would take place.  When you see that the story of Moses is directly caused by Joseph’s brothers selling him into slavery, you can visualize the whole plan laid out in the history of the Jews. 

Joseph is sold into slavery by his brothers and taken down to Egypt.  Once there he finds himself falsely accused of adultery and sent to prison.  (If Potiphar had believed his wife Joseph would have been executed, so I believe that Potiphar thinks he was falsely accused.)  Once in prison he has the opportunity to interpret two dreams which both come true and his talent of dream interpretation is revealed to the Pharaoh when he had a troubling dream.  When the Pharaoh hears that his dream foretells of a great famine, he makes Joseph the Prime Minister, second in command over all the land of Egypt, to wisely administer Egypt through this disaster. 

Now Joseph managed the years of plenty so that Egypt was the only place where there was food during the years of famine.  Eventually his father sent his brothers to buy food from him, and during these two or three trips for food they discovered that this high official was actually their brother Joseph, and he insisted that they go back and move their entire families down to Egypt to live during the rest of the famine.  (They actually remained there and 400 years later is when Moses leads them out of Egypt.)  During this time of buying food and moving to Egypt was when Joseph’s childhood dreams came to be.  His brothers did all bow down to him prior to them recognizing who he actually was. 

It is through this clan of Jews that came out of famine stricken Canaan to the land of Egypt that continues the genealogy of Jesus.  God moves in mysterious ways and everything that happens throughout history is on His timetable.