In this painting, Ruben depicts the moment when a servant cuts Samson’s hair, the source of his great power, while he is sleeping, after which he is arrested by Philistine soldiers, who can be seen through the doorway in the background of the painting. The painting was commissioned by the alderman of Antwerp, Nicholas Rockox, for his town house. Upon his death, the painting became part of the Liechtenstein Collection in Vienna, along with Rubens’ other masterpiece The Massacre of the Innocents. It was incorrectly attributed to Gerard von Honthorst, a Flemish painter, contemporary of Rubens’ who, like Rubens, also was heavily influenced by Caravaggio’s works.