Revelation 22:17: And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.

Many scholars say that the word Come in Revelation 22:17 is a plea by the Spirit and the bride for Christ's second advent to come quickly.¹ Other scholars say it is a plea for nonbelievers to come unto Christ,² while others say it is a combination of both.³ The timing of Christ's Second Coming is irrevocably fixed and cannot be hastened by any means.⁴ The Lord taught his disciples to pray for the kingdom of heaven to come, but not with haste or quickly.⁵ Since no plea, prayer, or power can hasten the Second Coming, Revelation 22:17 is an invitation⁶ for all people to Come unto Christ⁷ so that he can come quickly to them, to be unveiled before them, and to bless them with his presence in their individual lives.⁸

The Spirit and the bride invite all people to Come unto Christ and be saved in the celestial kingdom.⁹ The Spirit refers to the Holy Ghost.¹⁰ All people can feel the influence of the Holy Ghost through the light of Christ,¹¹ which is given to every person in this life¹² to persuade them to come unto Christ.¹³ They come unto Christ through the first principles and ordinances of the gospel,¹⁴ which are faith,¹⁵ repentance,¹⁶ and baptism.¹⁷ After baptism people receive the higher manifestation of the Spirit,¹⁸ which is the gift of the Holy Ghost.¹⁹

The bride represents exaltation-worthy members of Christ's true church ²⁰ that have already come unto Christ and can therefore invite others to do the same.²¹ These members of Christ's church are the covenant bride of Christ, who is the metaphorical bridegroom.²² The Spirit and the bride are mentioned together because the bride can invite people to come unto Christ,²³ but the Spirit is the convincing influence that can persuade people to come unto Christ with full purpose of heart.²⁴

The angel commands the bride to extend to all people²⁵ the invitation she already heard and accepted, saying, let him that heareth say, Come.²⁶ Many people outside the true church of Jesus Christ hunger and thirst after righteousness.²⁷ Therefore, the hearers of God's word must open their mouths²⁸ and say let him that is athirst come.²⁹ Those that respond to the call to come will be filled with the Holy Ghost³⁰ and receive eternal life.³¹ Hearers of the word have a duty to warn their neighbors,³² to feed my sheep,³³ and to strengthen thy brethren.³⁴

All people are invited to come unto Christ whosoever will,³⁵ but no one is compelled.³⁶ They can also come unto Christ and take the water of life freely.³⁷ That is, they can freely drink the water of eternal life³⁸ whose source is Jesus Christ.³⁹ By his atonement, Christ paid for this free water with a heavy price.⁴⁰ Therefore, those that seek to drink the water of eternal life must come unto Christ with all their heart and a willing mind,⁴¹ which is evidenced by their obedience to his commandments.⁴² To this end, the Savior said in Mark 8:34 that: "Whosoever will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me."⁴³ Those unwilling to do this will not be exalted in the celestial kingdom.⁴⁴