A group of muscular men, their arms raised and fists gripping stones, encircle a single figure dressed in red at the centre of the composition. The central figure looks upward, his face illuminated and his expression serene, as light falls directly onto his head and shoulders. Above him, a bright sky opens with swirling clouds, where two angels descend, one holding a golden crown and the other a palm branch.

The lower left foreground shows a man crouched, gathering stones from the ground, his body tense and his gaze fixed on the figure in red. To the right, another man kneels, arm extended and stone in hand, preparing to throw. Several executioners, their faces twisted in anger or determination, dominate the right side of the scene, their bodies rendered with dynamic, twisting poses and dramatic foreshortening.

The composition is packed with overlapping bodies, creating a swirling effect that leads the viewer's gaze upward from the violence below to the celestial vision above. Rubens uses strong contrasts of light and shadow, with luminous skin tones and deep reds and blues, to heighten the emotional intensity of the scene. The brushwork is fluid and energetic, especially in the rendering of flesh, drapery, and clouds, giving a sense of movement throughout the painting.

Each stone, limb, and fold of cloth is painted with attention to texture, from the roughness of the stones to the softness of the angels’ wings. A fragment of blue sky appears at the upper right, contrasting with the dense, golden clouds that envelop the divine figures above. Near the bottom right corner, a blue drapery lies crumpled on the ground, its folds painted with swift, broad brushstrokes.

The left edge of the painting is bordered by a massive, round stone structure, suggesting an architectural setting behind the crowd. Light falls unevenly across the figures, with some faces and torsos cast in deep shadow, while others are sharply highlighted, emphasizing the muscular forms and the drama of the moment.