Dissenters are those who separate from the church of England as by law established, and who worship God without those ceremonies enjoined in the ritual, or common prayer. The grand principles on which they ground their separation are: the right of private judgment and liberty of conscience, in opposition to all human authority in matters of religion; the supremacy of Christ as the only head of the church; and the sufficiency of the holy Scriptures as the rule of faith and practice.

Brief History of the Dissenters gives a three-hundred-year sketch of God’s providence in the preservation of the Dissenting church in England. Ivimey intended that this account would promote gratitude in the church for the freedoms enjoyed, and encouragement to continue in practicing the faith once and for all delivered to the saints.