he invincible Samson fell in love with beautiful Delilah and told her the secret of his strength; his hair. For a large amount of silver, she betrayed him to the Philistines. By cutting his hair (the scissors and hair are visible on the ground), she made Samson powerless. While the Philistines take him away, you can see the pain of this betrayal in his eyes.
The style of the figures is taken from his master Rubens while the colours resemble those of Titian. Van Dyck made two versions, this one can be seen in the Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna.