---
title: Isaiah 1:18
url: https://jw-apologetics.app/verses/isaiah-1-18/
markdown: https://jw-apologetics.app/verses/isaiah-1-18.md
type: verse
perspective: Protestant (historic Nicene) response to Jehovah's Witness teaching
reference: Isaiah 1:18
testament: OT
section: Prophets
index: https://jw-apologetics.app/llms.txt
---

# Isaiah 1:18

## Text (Berean Standard Bible)

> “Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are as red as crimson, they will become like wool.

## NWT Wording of the Key Phrase

- NWT (2013 revision): "Though your sins are like scarlet, They will be made as white as snow; Though they are as red as crimson cloth, They will become like wool."

## JW Usage

Cited for Jehovah's willingness to forgive those who turn back to him, and often paired with the call to clean conduct in the surrounding verses. The invitation to reason together is understood as Jehovah presenting his case to a wayward nation.

## Protestant Usage

Two things to draw from this, and the first is often overlooked. God invites reasoning. "Come now, let us reason together" — the God of Israel opens a case and asks his people to think it through with him. That posture runs right through Scripture: the Bereans are called noble-minded for checking an apostle's preaching against the Scriptures (Acts 17:11), and Paul tells the Thessalonians to test all things and hold fast to what is fine. This is worth naming when a Witness describes doubt as dangerous or independent thinking as a trap. Truth invites examination; only a fragile claim needs people afraid to ask. A faith confident in itself says bring your hardest question. Second, the promise itself. Scarlet to snow, crimson to wool — a total reversal, offered before any performance. That is worth saying plainly to someone carrying the weight of never being quite sure they have done enough. You can offer both without demanding anything: would you be willing to read Acts 17:11 this week and ask whether you are free to do what the Bereans were praised for? Compare Romans 2:4, Deuteronomy 13:3, 2 Timothy 2:15.

## Arguments Using This Verse

- [Afraid to Say What You Think](https://jw-apologetics.app/arguments/shunning-silences-doubt.md) — How the shunning threat silences honest questions [Authority]