Ecclesiastes 10:11

⁹ The one who quarries stones may be injured by them, and he who splits logs endangers himself.

¹⁰ If the axe is dull and the blade unsharpened, more strength must be exerted, but skill produces success.

If the snake bites before it is charmed, there is no profit for the charmer.

¹² The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious, but the lips of a fool consume him.

¹³ The beginning of his talk is folly, and the end of his speech is evil madness.

Do read the surrounding verses too, because the context often says more than a single verse.

Compare

BSB: If the snake bites before it is charmed, there is no profit for the charmer.
KJV: Surely the serpent will bite without enchantment; and a babbler is no better.
WEB: If the snake bites before it is charmed, then is there no profit for the charmer’s tongue.
ASV: If the serpent bite before it is charmed, then is there no advantage in the charmer.
DARBY: If the serpent bite before enchantment, then the charmer hath no advantage.
BLB: If the snake bites without a charm, then there is no advantage for the master of the tongue.

ÅB: Når ormen biter uten besvergelse[^2], har tungens eier[^3] ingen nytte av den.
OTB: Hvis en slange biter før den er sjarmert, er det ingen fortjeneste for sjarmøren.
B1930: Når ormen biter uten besvergelse, har tungens eier ingen nytte av den. / < før besvergelsen har funnet sted; SLM 58, 6.> / < besvergeren.>

Jeremiah 8:17
“For behold, I will send snakes among you, vipers that cannot be charmed, and they will bite you,” declares the LORD.
Read in context
Psalms 58:4–5
Their venom is like the venom of a snake, like a cobra that shuts its ears,
Read in context
Psalms 52:2
Your tongue devises destruction like a sharpened razor, O worker of deceit.
Read in context
Psalms 64:3
who sharpen their tongues like swords and aim their bitter words like arrows,
Read in context
Proverbs 18:21
Life and death are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
Read in context
James 3:6
The tongue also is a fire, a world of wickedness among the parts of the body. It pollutes the whole person, sets the course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.
Read in context