The Bible

• Type: Muggle Religious Text, Book
• Owners: Known to be possessed by certain wizarding families, including the Dumbledores and the Potters, likely as family heirlooms.

The physical appearance of the Bible is not described in detail in the novels. As a Muggle religious text, it is presumed to be a standard printed version of the book. Its significance in the wizarding world is not in its physical form but in the passages quoted from it.

The Bible is a purely Muggle text and possesses no inherent magical properties. Its usage within the wizarding world, as observed in the story, is for providing thematic and meaningful epitaphs for gravestones, reflecting the personal beliefs and values of certain wizarding families. It serves a cultural and spiritual purpose rather than a magical one.

The Bible's presence in the wizarding world indicates that despite the general separation of magical and Muggle societies, some wizards and witches retained or were influenced by Christian traditions. This is particularly evident in the historic village of Godric's Hollow, where both the Dumbledore and Potter families chose biblical inscriptions for the tombstones of their loved ones. This suggests that for these families, the book was a source of comfort and wisdom, used to commemorate the dead and articulate profound beliefs about life, love, and death.

The Bible plays a significant, though indirect, role in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, primarily through two key inscriptions found by Harry Potter and Hermione Granger in the Godric's Hollow graveyard.

• Dumbledore Family Gravestone: The tombstone of Kendra Dumbledore and Ariana Dumbledore bears the epitaph: “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Hermione Granger immediately identifies this as a quote from the Bible (Matthew 6:21). This inscription provides Harry with a crucial insight into Albus Dumbledore's character, alluding to his youthful, ambitious search for the Deathly Hallows (his “treasure”) and the tragic family history that ultimately reshaped his understanding of what was truly valuable.
• Potter Family Gravestone: The gravestone of James and Lily Potter is inscribed with: “The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” This quote, which Hermione later confirms is also from the Bible (1 Corinthians 15:26), is central to the series' overarching theme of accepting mortality. It stands in stark contrast to Lord Voldemort's obsession with achieving immortality at any cost. The phrase encapsulates the profound understanding that true mastery of death is not about evading it, but about facing it without fear, a lesson Harry Potter must ultimately learn to defeat Voldemort. It also serves as a thematic counterpoint to the Deathly Hallows' motto, “The Tale of the Three Brothers.”

These biblical quotes guide Harry's understanding of Dumbledore's past and the complex philosophy surrounding death and the Deathly Hallows, pushing him toward his final destiny.

• J.K. Rowling has stated that she is a person of faith and that the biblical quotes were deliberately chosen as they are “the key” to the themes of the entire series. She explained that she saved these explicit religious references for the final book because she felt that revealing them earlier might have made the story's ultimate direction too obvious. (J.K. Rowling interview, 2007)
• The inclusion of these quotes suggests that the wizarding world is not entirely secular and that some characters, even those deeply immersed in magic, adhere to or are influenced by Muggle religions.