The Life and Times of John Livingston [pp. 428-450]

John Livingston.
mation of religion, and of every following Assembly for
twelve years, except that of 1640. In this year he was sent
by order of Presbytery into England, with the earl of Cassil's
regiment. His account of this enterprise assures us that "the
committee of estates and general officers" were accustomed to
convene with the ministers for special prayer; and he speaks
of " the presbytery of the army:" so intimately was religion
united with all the concerns of life.
"It was very refreshful to remark," observes Mr. Livingston,
" that after we came to a quarter at night, there was nothing to be
heard almost through the whole army but singing of psalms, prayer,
and reading of the Scripture, by the soldiers in their several tents,
and I was informed, there was large [much] more the year before,
when the army lay at Dunse-law. And indeed in all our meetings and consultings, both within doors and without in the fields,
always the nearer the beginning, there was so much the more of
dependence upon God, and more tenderness in worship and walking, but through process of time, we still declined more and
more."-p. 30.
The years following, until 1648, were years of spiritual
dearth to Ireland. The rebellion and consequent disturbances
laid waste many parts of that fruitful field. The ministers
were deposed, banished, and superseded by hirelings: the
abjuration oath was urged on the dissenters, and the sword of
the rebels added new horror to their alarms. Various ministers were from time to time sent to Ireland by the Scots Assembly; and Mr. Livingston several times was one of the
number. His labours were abundant, especially in 1648, and
were such as nothing short of conscientious zeal could have
prompted.
"For the most part of all these three months," he informs us,
"I preached every day once, and twice on the Sabbath; the destitute parishes were many; the hunger of the people was become
great, and the Lord was pleased to furnish otherwise than usually
I wont to get at home. I came ordinarily the night before to the
place where I was to preach, and commonly lodged in some religious person's house; where we were often well refreshed at family
exercise. Usually I desired no more before I went to bed, but to
make sure the place of Scripture I was to preach on the next day.
And rising in the morning, I read four or five hours myself alone,
either in the chamber or in the fields; after that we went to
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