I want to add to the depth of the above answer by including two important quotations that will help you understand John Proctor's thinking. The first is the source of your question. It is spoken by Elizabeth Proctor:
He have his goodness now. God forbid I take it from him!
Proctor's original decision (NOT "his goodness") is to lie in order to save himself. It is when the confession is put in writing that Proctor hesitates at his lie. But Proctor's eventual decision ("his goodness") is to refuse to lie on paper. He tears his confession to pieces. His death is imminent. HOWEVER, he has his good name back, ... his loyalty, ... his integrity. The quote above is Elizabeth, his wife, standing by her husband's decision.
Also keep in mind what Arthur Miller, himself, says about John Proctor:
John Proctor’s flaw is his failure, until the last moment, to distinguish guilt from responsibility; America’s is to believe that it is at the same time both guilty and without flaw.
In other words, it is the difference between responsibility and guilt that is important to master (especially in the context of this play). John Proctor was never able to master this. But Miller goes even further and says that America has a flaw and a failure as well, to think that guilt can exist without any flaws present.
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