Vayikra: the daily offerings

(1) Hashem called to Moses and spoke to him from the Tent of Meeting, saying: (2) Speak to the Israelite people, and say to them: When any of you presents an offering of cattle to Hashem, he shall choose his offering from the herd or from the flock. (3) If his offering is a burnt offering from the herd, he shall make his offering a male without blemish. He shall bring it to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, for acceptance in his behalf before Hashem. (4) He shall lay his hand upon the head of the burnt offering, that it may be acceptable in his behalf, in expiation for him. (5) The bull shall be slaughtered before Hashem; and Aaron’s sons, the priests, shall offer the blood, dashing the blood against all sides of the altar which is at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting. (6) The burnt offering shall be flayed and cut up into sections. (7) The sons of Aaron the priest shall put fire on the altar and lay out wood upon the fire; (8) and Aaron’s sons, the priests, shall lay out the sections, with the head and the suet, on the wood that is on the fire upon the altar. (9) Its entrails and legs shall be washed with water, and the priest shall turn the whole into smoke on the altar as a burnt offering, an offering by fire of pleasing odor to Hashem. (10) If his offering for a burnt offering is from the flock, of sheep or of goats, he shall make his offering a male without blemish. (11) It shall be slaughtered before Hashem on the north side of the altar, and Aaron’s sons, the priests, shall dash its blood against all sides of the altar. (12) When it has been cut up into sections, the priest shall lay them out, with the head and the suet, on the wood that is on the fire upon the altar. (13) The entrails and the legs shall be washed with water; the priest shall offer up and turn the whole into smoke on the altar. It is a burnt offering, an offering by fire, of pleasing odor to Hashem. (14) If his offering to Hashem is a burnt offering of birds, he shall choose his offering from turtledoves or pigeons. (15) The priest shall bring it to the altar, pinch off its head, and turn it into smoke on the altar; and its blood shall be drained out against the side of the altar. (16) He shall remove its crop with its contents, and cast it into the place of the ashes, at the east side of the altar. (17) The priest shall tear it open by its wings, without severing it, and turn it into smoke on the altar, upon the wood that is on the fire. It is a burnt offering, an offering by fire, of pleasing odor to the Hashem.

Chapter 2

(1) When a person presents an offering of meal to Hashem, his offering shall be of choice flour; he shall pour oil upon it, lay frankincense on it, (2) and present it to Aaron’s sons, the priests. The priest shall scoop out of it a handful of its choice flour and oil, as well as all of its frankincense; and this token portion he shall turn into smoke on the altar, as an offering by fire, of pleasing odor to Hashem. (3) And the remainder of the meal offering shall be for Aaron and his sons, a most holy portion from Hashem’s offerings by fire. (4) When you present an offering of meal baked in the oven, [it shall be of] choice flour: unleavened cakes with oil mixed in, or unleavened wafers spread with oil. (5) If your offering is a meal offering on a griddle, it shall be of choice flour with oil mixed in, unleavened. (6) Break it into bits and pour oil on it; it is a meal offering. (7) If your offering is a meal offering in a pan, it shall be made of choice flour in oil. (8) When you present to Hashem a meal offering that is made in any of these ways, it shall be brought to the priest who shall take it up to the altar. (9) The priest shall remove the token portion from the meal offering and turn it into smoke on the altar as an offering by fire, of pleasing odor to Hashem. (10) And the remainder of the meal offering shall be for Aaron and his sons, a most holy portion from Hashem’s offerings by fire. (11) No meal offering that you offer to Hashem shall be made with leaven, for no leaven or honey may be turned into smoke as an offering by fire to Hashem. (12) You may bring them to Hashem as an offering of choice products; but they shall not be offered up on the altar for a pleasing odor. (13) You shall season your every offering of meal with salt; you shall not omit from your meal offering the salt of your covenant with God; with all your offerings you must offer salt.

(1) אדם כי יקריב מכם IF ANY OF YOU OFFER [AN OFFERING] — This means, when he offers: Scripture is speaking here of free — will offerings (cf. Sifra, Vayikra Dibbura d'Nedavah, Section 2 4). ...

(8) תקריבו YE SHALL OFFER [YOUR OFFERING] — The plural תקריבו teaches us that two (or more) persons may bring a burnt offering as a free — will gift in partnership (Sifra, Vayikra Dibbura d'Nedavah, Chapter 3 1). (9) קרבנכם YOUR OFFERING — This teaches us) that it (the עולה) may also be offered as a free-will gift of the community (not of individuals only). This was the burnt offering bearing the name of “the summer - fruit offering”) of the altar which had to be supplied from the surplus of the levy upon the people (cf. Shevuot 12a, Shevuot 12b).

(2) אדם כי יקריב מכם, “when a man amongst you wants to bring an offering, etc.” According to the grammar of our verse it could be inferred that a human [self-]sacrifice is theoretically permissible. If G’d had wanted to rule out such a possibility the Torah should have written אדם מכם שיקריב קרבן, “a man amongst you who wants to offer a sacrifice.” A closer look at the text will convince even the doubter that such a translation (and meaning) would have been quite impossible. The meaning of the verse is: “if someone amongst yourselves feels the urge to sacrifice himself to the Lord, you are to do this by means of offering a domestic animal such as a specimen from the cattle or the flock. You are not to take a human being as a sacrifice to the Lord.”
In the event that anyone entertained a doubt about this, this is spelled out beyond the possibility of any doubt in Jeremiah 19,5: where the prophet chastises the people for offering human sacrifices including their children to the Baal, something G’d says: “I have never commanded, never decreed, and which never came to My mind.”