《史記》文本裡的「變化」內涵，大致上可分為「時變」、「權變」、「世變」三個層面。第一層面的「時變」表明時序所造成的變遷，不論是自然或人文現象，都會隨著時間隱微改變。第二層面的「權變」是人們為了解決「時變」所帶來的異動，權衡之後的應對方式。第三層面的「世變」為三千餘年的歷史演進，亦是最常被論及的「古今之變」，所謂的：「原始察終，見盛觀衰」就是屬於此範疇。故知《史記》之「變」是具有順序性、階段性的：「權變」乃是因應「時變」而產生，「世變」則囊括了「時變」與「權變」兩者，此三個層面可以個別獨立，也可以相互融通，呈現出司馬遷的變動歷史觀。

There are three kinds of changes, i.e. shíbian, quanbian, and shìbian, that constitute the whole picture of the conception of “Change” (bianhua) in the Shiji or Records of the Grand Historian. While shíbian, which is always translated as the change in time, refers to changes that take place in both natural and human world, quanbian can be considered making corresponding adjustments when facing varieties derived from changes in time. Shìbian, as different from the two kinds of changes mentioned above, is said to be equivalent to what’s called gujin zhi bian, which refers to the historical progress of over three thousand years in which successors are able to observe the rise and fall of the myriad things from their beginning and ending. In short, the conception of “Change,” which functions as realizing Sima Qian’s dynamic view on history, is taken in the article as something intensionally gradational, where quanbian arises in the course of shíbian and shìbian is at the same time constituted.