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The picture illustrates the deliverance of Saint Peter, who had been arrested and thrown into prison on the orders of Herod, King of Judaea (Acts, XII, 4–11). Teniers makes the scene more immediate by situating the story in his own time, thus forcing the viewer to draw a parallel between past and contemporary behaviour. In the foreground, the four soldiers set to guard Peter gamble, while two peasants warm themselves by a fire. This mundane scene is contrasted with the celestial vision of the angel urging the aged saint to escape, glimpsed through the open cell door in the right background. The picture’s exquisite finish on copper, with the costumes and interior rendered in meticulous detail, adds to the dramatic veracity of the Biblical story.