UPon the serious Consideration of that Cloud of the Lords Anger wherewith he hath covered this Land, in the lengthening out of War, which is one of the sorest of Gods Judgments, witholding in a great measure his blessing and success upon Counsels and en­deavours for the recovery of our peace, whence very great Devastations in sundry parts of the Countrey hath ensued, and more Calamity is threat­ned, and that righteously for our aggravated Sins whereby the Lord our God hath been provoked, which sins have been expressed in several former Or­ders for days of Fasting & Prayer that have been published; yet these sins have not been turned from, but we are rather in the time of our distress trespassing yet more against him: Spiritual Judgments are prevailing, hardness of heart upon very many, great Security, Oppression, Luxury, and the Pride of this Land testifying against us to our very faces, Exacerbation of spirit (as in Massah and Meribah) breaking forth in stead of that Humiliation that should appear in such a day of the Lords rebuke upon us, our refusing to hear and obey the voice of the Lord in the mouth of his Servants whome he hath sent to preach in his Name: whence the Lord hath denyed to hear our supplications, and seemed to shut out our prayer when we have cryed to him, and to threaten us for our worldliness to drive us out of our worldly possessions, and for leaving our first love to remove the very Candlesticks out of their place except we repent, and for our sinfull heathenizing, to deli­ver us into the hand of the barberous Heathen round about us, and so to clear up the righteousness of his Judgments before all the world; (if by what he hath already done so dreadfully, and his threatning of further Judgments we will not fear him, nor receive instruction, nor be reformed) in demon­strating that (in case we be ruined) it is we that lay this pleasant land desolate,

This Court doth appoint the second day of March next to be kept to a day of solemn Humiliation, Fasting and Prayer by all the Inhabitants of this Ju­risdiction, respecting all ranks and orders amongst us both in Church and Commonwealth, who are hereby earnestly exhorted to make humble con­fession of their sins, throughly to amend their wayes and turn to the Lord with their whole hearts, that so the Lord may be entreated for us, and for his Name sake turned away from the fierceness of his great anger, & that yet at length he may be pleased to go forth with, and give success to such forces as are or may be sent forth as a meanes under him for the suppression of the Enemy: And it is hereby ordered that such as cannot have seasonable notice hereof shall and are hereby injoyned to keep the fifth day of the next following Week in stead of the day abovenamed,