"But not to suggest more obvious reasons, it may be that they are kept silent by the very constitution of their nature. Or,--can we not suppose it?--guilty as they may be, retaining, nevertheless, a zeal for God's glory and man's welfare, they shrink from displaying themselves black and filthy in the view of men; because thenceforward, no good can be achieved by them; no evil of the past be redeemed by better service."
"...she threw one of the prickly burrs at the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale. The sensitive clergyman shrunk, with nervous dread, from the light missile." ((Chapter 10/PAGE 117))
The word choice here is slightly interesting. The above passage is from the mouth of Dimmesdale, explaining the certain secrets and puzzles inside of a sinner who can't come to terms with his wrong doing. (Who does that sound like?)
However, speaking of all sinners keeping their secrets and remaining out of the spotlight isn't what he's doing, for he is so weak to devalue his clerical position and his reputation and public attitude, he is revealing his inner pain 'indirectly' to Chillingworth.
While men will be guilty of sin, they will still appear to stay true to God, and keep a pious lifestyle despite the actions of their sin. They will 'shrink' from replicating their sin, and will never make it apparent of the misdeed. There is no reason to, because no matter how much good you do; once you've sinned, no amount of charity or servitude can redeem yourself from Satan.
While who have sinned will essentially 'shrink', Arthur in turn does so when Pearl throws the prickly plant at him through the window. He 'shrinks' which is just an action that he has no control over doing because he doesn't want a face full of little spikes. Unfortunately, Chillingworth picks up on this, and furthers his suspicions about Arthur and his wife-stealing.
However, Hester seems to be getting along great! She seems to embody the counter-argument for Arthur's words here. The sin she committed, while it is the same as Arthur's, has been taken way out of proportion by the community, but by this point of the book, they have almost forgotten about it. 'A' is already turning into angel by being nice and serving the community through her art and work. This outlook on her is a direct opposite of what Arthur thinks will happen to him.
Public vs Private sin. Good note of word choice (diction) here. Note the understatement of your words: "doesn't want a face full of little spikes." This is exactly what he fears will happen if he admits his sin in pubic. Of course he can become spiritually well until he admits in public.
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