21:18a

jasper: This word refers to a spotted or veined stone of a variety of colors. It is often a reddish color, but can also be deep green, brown, or deep yellow. See how you translated this word in 21:11.

21:18b

the city itself of pure gold: This phrase indicates that everything in the city was made of pure gold. This would include the buildings and at least the main street (21:21b).

pure gold: The word pure refers to something without dirt or blemish. The gold had nothing else in it.

as pure as glass: There are two ways to interpret the Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as pure :

(1) The phrase indicates that the gold is very pure. For example:

as pure as glass (New Century Version)

(2) The phrase indicates the gold is see-through. For example:

as clear as glass (Good News Translation)

It is recommended that you follow interpretation (1), because the word pure should be understood in the same way here as in the phrase “pure gold.” Other ways to translate this phrase are:

with the brilliance of glass (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
-or-
bright as clear glass (Revised English Bible)

The Greek word also means “clean.” John probably implies that the city is acceptable to God. The Jews and Jesus used the word “clean” in the same way (Matthew 23:26, Luke 11:41, John 13:10) The gold of the city is completely without dirt or blemish. For example:

as clean as glass

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